Five families will have to be relocated from Yukon College's new family residence following a small blaze which started at around 8:30 this morning.

While there was some small fire damage in the bedroom where the fire started, the units that residents are leaving have water damage.

Whitehorse fire chief Warren Zakus said the blaze had been extinguished by the time six firefighters arrived on the scene at around 8:50 a.m., thanks to the sprinkler system.

"The situation may have been a lot worse," he said, noting the sprinklers activated on two floors and worked well.

Firefighters remained on the scene to make sure the blaze had indeed been extinguished. A mattress was removed to make sure there was no smoldering. They were back in service by 10:49 a.m., Zakus said.

While the exact cause of the blaze remains unknown, the fire chief said it appears to be accidental.

College spokeswoman Jacqueline Bedard said there is a no-smoking policy in place at the residence and the college doesn't believe there was any infraction.

A man, woman and child live in the unit, though the man and a friend of his were the only people inside at the time. They were both sleeping when the fire started, the college said in a statement.

One of the two men had minor burns to his hand when he was trying to put the fire out.

It's expected it will take three days to clean up the five units affected.

As of late this morning, Bedard said impacted residents were getting things ready to leave their units, while college staff looked at relocating them within the residence, if there are spots available.

If they can't be accommodated at the college, the school will pay for accommodations at hotels.

It's expected the clean-up, which has already started, will take about three days.

The college relocated to its current campus 20 years ago.